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, 0. E. FRITTS.

. CURTAIN FIXTURE.

No 247,491, Patented Sept. 21,1881, v

N. PETERS. Photo-Lithographer. Washington, D, C.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES E. FRITTS, OF ONEONTA, NEW YORK.

CURTAIN- FIXTURE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 247,491, dated September 27, 1881,

Application filed December 7, 1878. I

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES E. FRITTS, of Oneonta, Otsego county, New York, have invented certain Improvements in Ourtain-Fix tures, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates, principally, to that class of curtain-fixtures in which the roller is provided with a spring and so arranged that pulling the curtain down winds up the spring,

which then tends to roll the curtain up again, unless locked and held by the stop-work. It is so constructed that the curtain can be freely moved up ordown by the hand without the use of cords or other devices therefor, or'it can be locked and retained at any point by simply checking the speed when the desired height is reached, and, when so locked, the tension or adjustment of the spring will be automatically preserved, whether the roller is fitted in the brackets or is removed therefrom, or, it removed therefrom without being locked, it will instantly lock itsei t'and prevent the springfrom unwinding. The roller can also be lowered from the top of the window-frame, when desired, in order to allow free passage of air into the room at the top, or for other purposes; and

I there are devices for keeping the curtain in its proper place and for fastening the bottom of the curtain at the bottom ofthe window or in any other position, all entirely independent of the position or the movement of the roller.

The invention consists of a new ratchet, a new automatic stop-work or locking device,

consisting of the combination of my ratchet,

I view of my curtain-fixture attached to the window, showing the roller partly in longitudinal section in the line as .r in Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is an end View of my shade-roller. Fig. 3 is a vertical transverse section of the flaring-mouth bracket R, spring S, and end A of the spindle. Figs. t-and 5 are different constructions of spindle and pawl, as hereinafter described.

Fig. 6 shows the fastening device attached to the bottom stick.

P is the roller, provided at one end with a fixed end plate and round journal supported in a suitable bracket, and at the other with the plate or end piece, F, bored through the center for the spindle A B O, on which the rollerlturns. The roller is hollow at one end, and contains a spiral spring, X, one end of which is attached to the spindle, the other to the roller, as usual. The end A of the spindle is flattened and fits in a slot in the bracket R. VVhere it passes through the end piece it is round and acts as a journal therefor. It then has a shoulder, against which is fastened a Washer, W, for confining the play of the end piece, and consequently of tberoller itself," upon the spindle. The end piece has acircular flange upon it, which constitutes the ratchet, upon the smooth surface of which rests, Without interfering with the quick motion of the ratchet in either direction, the free end or lip of the pawl D, pivoted upon the pin 0 of the spindle. The ratchet has notchesin it, of any desired number, and when one of them comes slowly under the pawl it drops therein and locks the roller, preventing the spring X from rolling up the curtain any higher. This always occurs when the roller is turned slowly; but when it is desired to raise the curtain it is first pulled down far enough to raise thepawl out of the notch, then let back with a quick motion, and the pawl then passes over the notches without dropping in to them until the curtain has attained the required height, when the speed is checked, the pawl drops and locks the roller. The pawl will pass over the notches, as just described, when the entire bearing-surface of the ratchet is circular or concentric with the center; butthe speed of the roller must be considerable to avoid locking and stopping. To obviate this fault and enable the roller to be turned at quite moderate speed without locking, 1 construct this ratchet with the delivery-lips G of thenotches higher than the locking-lips E, whereby the pawl is gently lifted higher than the opposite lip E when approaching each notch, and will not catch in it except when the speed is checked for the purpose of lockin g the roller. The lips Gr may be made higher than E by a gradual rise from each lip E to the next lip G, or with the bearing-surface concentric, or nearly so, from E on, with the rise only at or near G. In either case a very slight rise is sufficient.

I am aware that rising inclines before the notches, in connection with falling inclines after them, whereby the two lips of the notches are kept of equal height, are not new, as they were described and claimed in my former patent, dated May 6, 1873, No. 138,493, and were used with a double-acting pawl, principally to produce a compulsory double vibration of the pawl for each notch, and thereby to limit the speed of revolution of the curtain-roller when the curtain escapes from the hand, or the speed with which the spindle can whirl around and the spring unwind when the roller is removed from the brackets unlocked. They were not designed to and could not affect the locking, which, at the comparatively slow speeds at which it can take place, is determined by the relative heights of thetwo lips of the notches.

The height of Gr above E is increased in proportion as we wish to turn the roller at a slower speed without having the pawl drop in the notches and lock. The greater this height the slower we can turn the roller without looking. Instead, however, of raising G above E by means of rising inclines at or near Gr, substantially the same effect will be produced by leaving the bearing-surface concentric, or nearly so, before the notches and lowering the lips E, by which means G will be higher than E, and the ratchet so formed will be in principle and operation the same as already described. The notches are made either entirely or partly through the flange. \Vhen the ratchet is moved backward, or from left to right, under the pawl, Fig. 2, the latter will not lock the roller, whether the speed is fastor slow, as the back side of the pawl-lip is made slanting, so that it can readily be drawn out of the notch if it should fall in one; but the front side of the pawl-lip is made vertical, or nearly so, and will lock the ratchet when it falls into a notch during the forward motion. The wording of this specification, therefore, refers only to the forward motion of the ratchet. It is evident, however, that the effect would be the sameif the ratchet were still and the pawl moving, (provided the pawl bears on the ratchet,) which would be the case when the roller is held in the hand and the spindle turns, or if both move,

' but in opposite directions, or in the same direction but at different speeds.

In this curtain-fixture I do not confine myself to any particular form of pawl, provided it be a single-actingpawl, or one which has but one part or end normally acted upon by the ratchet, nor to any particular mode of attaching the pawl to the spindle, but use any which may be preferred in each case. The pawl may be in the form of a slide, clutch, drop, dog, or catch, of any shape, whether attached to the spindle on one side, astride of it, or in any other manner, by a pivot, slot, tongue, cam, screw, or otherwise, and whether caused to by the dotted lines.

drop or act by gravity, the action of a spring, or other means. Fig. 4 shows one form in transverse section. It is a slotted piece,D, fitting on each side of the spindle, whiehhas the enlargement B grooved on each side, as shown The pawl slides verti cally in these grooves, and the lip d at the bot tom catches in the notches of the ratchet. Fig. 5 shows a similar pawl but the enlargement B of the spindle is only on one side of the pawl, which is confined between B and the end piece, F,insteadof between two shoulders on the spindle, as in Fig. 4. Any other similar devices may be used with this ratchet.

In any form of pawl the locking speed may be made slower by making the front lip of the pawl shorter than the rear lip or side of the lip, and vice versa. This can be done instead of or in connection with the varying of the heights of the opposite lips of the ratchetnotches, as herein described, for regulating the locking speed; but 1 consider the best arrangement to be a single-acting pawl pivoted upon the spindle, and a spindle having a single pendant or support for the pawl on one or both sides thereof, as may be preferred, as shown in Fig. 2. Instead of the precise form of pivoted pawl there shown, it is obvious that many other shapes will operate as well and yet be single-acting pivoted pawls. For'example, the I pawl can lock from its pivot 0 instead of pushing toward it when locked, as described; or the pawl may be above the spindle and act on the upper portion of the ratchet by a tail-piece heavier than the locking end, holding the latter up against the ratchet by gravity.

The stop-work or locking device formed by my construction and arrangement of ratchet and paw], although specially applicable to curtain-fixtures, may also be applied to many other uses with equal advantage, as well as to other constructions of curtain-fixtures from that herein shown, the essential point in these or any other equivalent forms in which my invention may be applied being that the bearingsurface for the pawl shall have the lips Gr higher than E and the pawl arranged to normally rest on it, except when in one of the notches, and to pass over the notches without catching when the speed is rapid, but drop freely into them with a slow speed. When the curtain roller is removed from the brackets without being locked the spring uncoils immediately, and the roller is liable to be damaged thereby. To prevent this I add a safety device, consisting of a spring, S, attached to the spindle, and inoperative while the roller is in the brackets, but which presses the pawl upon the ratchet when freed from the bracket and causes it to instantly lock the roller. When the spindle is made with a single pendant, as before specified, the spring S can be attached to it on one side and outside of the pendant.

A spring, S, can be attached to one side of the spindle at a point outside of the pendant B, as shown in the drawings, by which means the groove in the spindle for its reception,while passing through the end piece, can be readily 'made in casting it, saving all hand-labor and avoiding the weakening of the pendant which would result from making the slot under the spindle and through the pendant. It there'is a continuous collar around the spindle,instead of a single pendant, an opening for the spring S must be made through it at the proper place. The space on the spindle from the shoulder against which the washer W rests to the 'shoulder 0 is to give room for the coils of the spring S, which maybe either on the side of the spindle, as shown,or arpund it. From '0 to the end it issquared. On two sides of this square the shoulder c is notched in. The inner end of spring S fits two sides of the square and lies in one notch. The end of the springX fits the other two sides and lies in the other notch. When so placed the square is driven into the wooden rod A, which is in effect a continuation of the spindle A B 0. Thus both springs are securely fastened by simply driving the spindle up to the shoulder '12 into the rod A.

When it is desired to make the roller as cheaply as possible the spring S may be dispensed with, being not essential to the working of the tixture, but only a safety device, as before stated. The spindle is then squared up to the shoulder of the washer W. The spring X may fit all the sides of the square, and the spindle, being driven into A, fastens the end of spring X, and also the washer W, rendering it unnecessary to rivet the washer down. The washer itself may be omitted when the end of A is larger than the hole in the end piece, and can serve the same purpose, and the end of spring X may be fastened around A instead of around the spindle, this being substantially equivalent to the construction just described. The same operation also secures the end piece and ratchet, pawl D, and spindle A B O in their proper relative positions. The end piece being then secured to the roller by a collar encircling both,or in any other convenient manner, the roller is finished with the least possible amount of hand-labor.

When the spring S is used I employ for the working end of the roller a brackethaving a closed slot with a flaring mouth, whereby the spring S is forced up against the spindle by inserting it into the bracket, and becomes inoperative If the roller is removed from the bracket unlocked, the springS, being then freed, presses ontagainst the pawl D and causes it to bear on the ratchet and drop into the first notch that arrives under it, locking the roller and preventing the spring X from becoming unwound, no matter in what position the roller may be held. This safety device can be used in connection with a concentric ratchet with equal advantage. When the spring S is dispensed with an ordinary open-slot bracket will answer. Instead, however, of attaching the brackets to the window, asis customary, I suspend them from cords m and n, which pass up over rings or pulleys M M on the windowframe J, and are then united by tying together or otherwise, so that both are moved up or down alike by pulling on the united ends, and the roller is raised or lowered in a horizontal position. It is fastened atany desired height by attaching the united ends to a hook at the side of the window, or in any other suitable manner; but at whatever height the roller is held, it is as ready and free to operate as if it had been fastened to the window-frame. The rod H is used to steady thebrackets and keep them in position.

Guide cords or rods 00 run up and down beside thecurtain, and are fastened to the top and bottom of the window-frame, so as to stand free in the rings 9 g on the rollervand t tat the bottom of the curtain, preventing it being blown about by the wind, but allowing the free movement up and down of the roller and the curtain. The rings 99 are formed on the lower ends of brackets R R, and project either outward or (which I prefer) backward, so as not to increase the outward projection; but they can be made at any other part of the brackets; or the holes for attachingthe cords m and n may be large and wide enough to allow the cords 0 0 to pass through them and down alongside of the roller journal-bearings.

The rings or slotted pieces 15 t are attached to or formed upon a rod, T, which is fastened to the bottom stick of the curtain tightly enough to remain in any position as placed,

and may be concealed under the curtain. ()ne way of fastening it is by a small eyebolt or screw passing through the stick, having a ring on'one end, through which the rod T passes, and a nut on the other. By turning the nut, T is drawn up against thestick. One or more can be used to fasten it; or it may he lastened in any other suitable manner which will allow it to he moved "or adjusted when desired, and when so moved will remain as it is placed. At the center or any convenient pointis a projection, by which the rod T may be turned or moved and the rings t t caused to twist or bind on cords 0 0 and fasten the bottom of the curtain in any required position. If the roller is then raised, the curtain, being fastened at the bottom, will unwind from the roller; or ifit is lowered the curtain will be wound upon it. I make the rings or pieces t t with openings in them, so that the curtain can be readily freed from them and moved about, if desired. If the curtain is quite wide, a rod, T, can be used at each end of the bottom stick, instead of one long rod; or any other suitable construction may be adopted which will enable the bottom stick to be fastened and held when and where desired, or allowitto move freely up and down when preferred. The device may be attached to the curtain itself, if preferred, and fasten the curtain,instead of the bottom stick; or such a device may be attached to both.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-- 1. An internal ratchet having its bearing- 4 mason surface formed with rising inclines before the notches, whereby the delivery-lips G of the notches are made higher than the loekinglips E, the heightot Gr above E being increased in proportion as we wish to lower the speed at which the ratchet can move without the pawl dropping in the notches and locking, substantially as and for the purposes herein set forth.

2. An improved automatic stopwork or locking device, consisting of the combination of an internal ratchet having rising inclines before the notches with one or more singleacting pawls.

3. A single-acting pawl attached to the spin dle or journal and engaging with a ratchet having rising inclines before the notches.

4. The combination ot' a ratchet having rising inclines before the notches with one or more sin gle-actin g pawls, when both the ratchet and the pawlor pawls are arranged in or upon the roller.

5. A curtain-roller having attached to it an internal ratchet having its bearing-surface formed with rising inclines betore the notches, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

(5. A curtain-roller having attached to it a ratchet having its bearingsurface formed with risinginclines before the notches,substantially as described, in combination with one or more single-acting pawls, when such pawl or pawls are attached to the spindle or journal.

7. The combination, with a spring shade-rol!- er, of both a ratchet having its bearing-surface formed with rising inclines before the notches and a singleacting pawl arranged on the S]')lll dle whose locking end normally rests on such hearing-surface, except when in one of the notches, whereby the stop-work or locking device is always kept together and the spring is prevented from unwinding when the locked roller is removed from the brackets.

8. The combination of a ratchet having rising inclines before the notches, substantially as described, one or more pawls arranged upon the spindle, and a spindle having such pawl or pawls attached to it.

9. In a spring shade-roller, the combination of roller P, a ratchet having rising inclines before the notches, one or more single-acting pawls, a spindle having such pawl or pawls attached to it, red A, and spring X, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

10. A spindle for curtain-fixtures having the before the notches, one or more single-acting pawls, a spindle having such pawl or pawls attached to it, spring X, washer W, rod A, spring S, and flaring'mouth bracket R.

13. A bracket, R, having suitable bearings for the spindle orjournal of the roller, and the end of rod H, and attachments for the supporting-cord and the guiding-cord, all in one piece.

14. The combination of the brackets R R, rod H, cords m and n, and rings or pulleys M M, for raising or lowering the roller.

15. The combination, withthe bottom stick, of a movable or adjustable rod, '1, having open rings orslotted piecest t, and the cords 0 0, or the equivalents thereof, so arranged that the slot-ted pieces 6 t can move freely up or down along the cords 0 0, or can he made to bind upon the cords and fasten the bottom stick when desired.

CHARLES E. FRITTS.

Witnesses:

LUTHER, SMITH, GEO. A. WHEELOOK. 

